Geopolitical instability, high energy prices and tariffs put pressure on small businesses
Lack of adequate resources and structures to cope with unfavourable circumstances
by Matteo Andreola and Luca Jeantet
The business crisis continues to squeeze Italian entrepreneurship, also as a result of the complex international scenario and the clashes in global trade relations. In the first half of 2025, according to the third edition of the Unioncamere Osservatorio Crisi d'impresa, the judicial liquidations exceeded 5,200, an increase of over 25% compared to the same period in 2024. A trend that confirms the critical phase that had already emerged last year, when these procedures had reached 9,203 cases, compared to 7,685 in 2023.
Triggering factors and companies involved
The increase in liquidation proceedings is due, among other factors, to the structural inability to cope with high energy costs, geopolitical uncertainties, rising tariffs and slowing domestic demand. Factors squeezing profitability and pushing many companies, especially small ones, towards closure. The hardest hit sectors remain trade (23.2%), construction (22.2%) and manufacturing (16.3%), where fragile assets and high indebtedness make the effects of the crisis more severe.
The companies involved have an average of six employees and a production value of two million, confirming a crisis that mainly affects smaller and less structured realities. The phases of global instability show how vulnerable Italy's production fabric, based on small and medium-sized enterprises, is to external shocks: companies that function in good times, but struggle to recover when the conjuncture worsens, lacking the resources and assets adequate to cope with crisis phases.
The Italian economic scenario
The Italian economy continues to move along an uncertain ridge. In the second quarter of 2025, GDP contracted 0.1 % on the previous period, while trend growth stood at +0.4 %. For the full year, forecasts indicate an increase of around 0.6 %, with a stronger recovery expected in 2026 (+0.8 %), supported by the gradual loosening of monetary policy and a partial revival of consumption.
Industrial production remains weak: after a marginal +0.2 % in June, it dropped by 2.4 % in August compared to the previous month and by 2.7 % year-on-year. The slowdown in foreign demand, the weakness of the manufacturing sector, and uncertainty about the cost of credit all weighed heavily.
